It was the old woman.
"It's you!" Trisha and I said in unison. "So it was the same woman who gave me the ring," I turned to Trisha and said.
"That is right," the old woman said. "I'm here to check up on you two."
"Why?" I asked.
"To make sure that you're not doing anything too extreme with that ring I gave you, for starters," she said.
"Am I?" I asked, a little worried.
"In a minute," she said. "Secondly, I'm here to make sure you two know what's going on between you." She beckoned for us to sit on the bed. We did while she remained standing. "I'll start with what I told you a few weeks ago," she said, looking at Trisha. "You're right. Joe is the person you were supposed to find. Of course, you knew him all along. But what I told you opened your eyes enough to see that he was of whom I spoke." She turned to me. "Now has for you, my dear Joe, I entrusted you with that ring because I did not think you would use it for malicious purposes."
I swallowed hard. "I've betrayed that trust, haven't I?"
She smiled slightly. "Not exactly. I know the kind of power you have is very easy to succumb to. You've handled it better than probably anyone else in this town would. You have done some questionable things with it, but it looks like you're willing to fully atone for all of them."
"How?" I asked. "By setting us all up in the house and looking after all of the girls?"
"Yes," she said. "You see, you were trying to be noble and stick up for yourself and your friends. But your wishes against the girls were made in a rage of vengeance. However, sometime while making those wishes, you realized that. And you knew you had to take responsibility for what you had done, which meant you had to take responsibility for all of those you changed. By doing so, you absolved yourself of any thing for which you might be punished."
"So...I'll still have the ring?" I asked.
She nodded. "Of course you will. I'm sure you already know you'll have to undo everything one day. You certainly need the ring for that. Just know that I'll keep watching you. So if you want to get at someone for some particular reason, and don't want to invite him or her to live here, make sure you teach that person his lesson and be done with it."
"I have a question," Trisha said. "Why is it you said I'd be able to read his thoughts? Did you give me that power or...what?"
"Oh, heavens no," she said. "Honestly, haven't you kids ever heard of soulmates? That's why you know what he's thinking. You can read his expressions and his actions. As for exactly reading his thoughts, he did that."
"So if we're soulmates," I said, "does that mean we're supposed to get married?" I saw Trisha smile at me out of the corner of her eye.
"That's for the two of you to decide," the old woman said. "You have to listen to each other, and yourselves, to find that answer. Joe, I think right now you're thinking that it would be impossible. You're probably right, given the circumstances." She turned to look at Trisha. "Don't get down about that. If you're already so certain that's what you want, it doesn't mean he'll never share that want. He just needs time. Now, do you have any other questions?"
"Yea," I said. "Am I doing a good job so far?"
"Let's see," she said. "You haven't harmed anyone. You unmade some wishes you knew were wrong. And you are sincere in trying to make these girls better people." I smiled, happy that she approved. "But I must warn you," she continued. "Make sure you don't try to do too much at once. If you do, the consequences would be...unimaginable. They would not be good." She turned back to Trisha. "You need to keep him in check. You're the only one who can understand what he might put himself through."
"OK," Trisha said.
"Good," the old woman said. "As I've said, I'll still be watching you. So keep your noses clean."
"Thank you," I said, standing up. Trisha did the same.
"I can show myself out," she said. "I may be old but I haven't lost my sense of direction." She turned to walk out the door.
"Uh, just one more question?" I asked.
She stopped and turned around. "Go ahead."
"Was there some reason you picked us?" I asked. "I mean, why us?"
"Joe," she smiled, "You already know the answer to that question. You're just too humble to admit it's the truth."
With that, she turned back around, walked out through the open door, and closed it behind her. Just out of curiosity, I went to the door and opened it. I stepped outside and looked down both sides of the hallway. I closed the door and stepped back inside.
"She's not there, is she?" Trisha said.
I smiled. "You already know the answer to that question."